Heavy-duty caster wheels are well-known within the industry, especially the forklift truck industry. Such heavy-duty casters are used to support relatively heavy loads transported by small forklift trucks, material handling carts, and the like. Such heavy-duty caster wheels commonly use various biasing means or elastomeric means to absorb high levels of forces or loads applied to the roller or wheel of the caster wheel. Such biasing means and elastomeric means improve the load bearing capability of the caster wheel resulting in smoother operation of the caster wheel, ease of movement of the caster supported truck or vehicle, and improved truck travel operation due to the reduced wear of the caster wheel.
Previous caster wheel designs have utilized various forms of the biasing means and the elastomeric means. For instance, steel compression or torsional coil springs have been used to bias resiliently supported casters, but such springs are relatively large and heavy and not readily adaptable for many caster wheel installations, wherein the overall vertical dimension available for the caster wheel is limited, and the vertical profile of the caster wheel assembly must be concise. In addition, such springs are typically expensive, thereby leading to inefficiencies that are undesirable in the caster wheel industry.
Other known designs have implemented polyurethane blocks as a means for absorbing compressive loads applied to the roller or wheel of the caster wheel. Such designs are typically less expensive than the above-noted steel compression or torsional coil springs; however, such polyurethane blocks typically break down after extended use and cycled loads, thereby requiring replacement and/or repair of the caster wheel.
Heavy duty caster wheel assemblies also lack a quick and simple method of vertically adjusting the roller or wheel height of the caster wheel assembly. To provide vertical adjustment of the roller or wheel of the caster wheel assembly, many caster wheel assemblies require that the roller or wheel be disassembled and reassembled onto a different rotational axis provided on the caster wheel assembly. Other designs require a partial or complete disassembly and reassembly of the caster wheel assembly in order to provide vertical adjustment of the roller or wheel of the caster wheel assembly.
It would be desirable to provide a heavy-duty caster wheel assembly that provided a simple and efficient method for providing vertical adjustment of the roller or wheel of the caster wheel assembly while also providing an inexpensive and high-quality elastomeric or biasing means for absorbing heavy loads to a heavy-duty caster wheel assembly.